The morning after

With an aching head I made my way through the sitting room to the bathroom. Both brothers and the dog Pudsy were flat out on the sofa. A half drunk bottle of brandy on the table, and a smell so vile I retched.   Once up we made our way back into Exideuil to the restaurant to meet Mum for a hearty bread breakfast. Carolyn had had a terrible night (again) and she and the girls had still not eaten solids since we arrived in France so we made a visit to the doctor on route. Kate made a list in French of all Carolyn’s problems to give to the doctor. In France you just drop in and wait to be seen, then pay. After half an hour Carolyn emerged with a folder of prescriptions to take to the pharmacy. I asked her what was wrong, she had no idea, she couldn’t understand the Doctor!  After a rather disappointing breakfast – due to us all feeling shit – we kissed Mum goodbye. With a broken leg and ankle and clutching her cards and flowers, we waved goodbye as she hobbled into Eno’s (her Dutch companion) car on route to her home outside Limoges. We planned to drive there that afternoon once we had taken the car to the garage for a quick check over and get the wheels balanced. We all rushed back to Kate’s house to pack. We were really excited to be staying with Mum for a few days. The cases were in the kitchen. The twins were all packed up and Carolyn had managed not to throw up for an hour, things were looking good.  Until Jolyon rang to say the mechanic could not allow us to drive the car as it was a death trap. He needed to order a part which ‘may’ arrive tomorrow. It was raining. We all felt terrible and we were stranded. Kate and Serge’s house was in a small Hamlet in the middle of nowhere. They were working so could not help us. The twins started to cry. Carolyn rushed to the toilet. I poured a small wine and Jolyon announced he hated France and the French.